Announcing the new website for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin's 5th Congressional District!

We want to make it easier for Democrats in the five county area within the 5th CD to access information that concerns them and find more easily how it relates to our current political climate.

We also want to provide independents (and independent thinkers), the opportunity to get a fair and balanced view of who we are and what we stand for, rather than having to depend on spin from the talking heads who are bought and paid for by the other side.

August 4, 2008

Obama Campaign / Washington County Democrats Open Office in West Bend

The Obama Campaign and the Washington County Democratic Party opened up their campaign office today to a standing room only crowd. 

We were introduced to the Obama Campaign staff, who will be targeting five areas around the office with mail, and canvassing efforts.

The office is located at 152 N. Main Street, West Bend.  The hours are generally from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 or 8:00 p.m. but may vary depending upon neighborhood events.

The 5th CD DPW sold out of all of its Obama buttons and bumperstickers at the event.

(The Milwaukee County Dems also sold out of all of their Obama T-shirts, buttons and bumper stickers - except for one, at the Wisconsin State Fair on Monday.  They are expecting another batch to come in on Thursday - probably no T-shirts though.)

The level of excitement and interest in this race bodes well for Obama, but we aren't taking anything for granted.  McCain and his advisors, including Karl Rove, have been throwing everything but the kitchen sink at Obama, to try to weaken his image and question his Presidential credentials.  

Because McCain hasn't been able to get anyone to fill his events (and has had to change venues to smaller facilities to make them appear larger), while Obama is being greeted by overflow crowds, he's attacked Obama for being a "rock star", comparing him to Britney Spears and Paris Hilton (Hilton's grandfather and parents have expressed their irritation with McCain for wasting the money they donated to his campaign on such flippant commercials with no substance.  News reports indicate that McCain is spending $150,000 a day to air those commercials.  But then, what does he care, it's not his money!)

McCain is also blaming Obama for high gas prices (at the same time that he claims that Obama hasn't been around long enough to accomplish anything).  Unfortunately, McCain has been around for 26 years in the Congress, while he hasn't done anything to prevent our addiction to oil, come up with alternative fuels or mandate increased fuel efficiencies for vehicles, which the Democratic Carter administration had pushed for in 1977, but which were rolled back by the Republican Reagan and Bush administrations. 

One of our best selling and most requested bumper stickers is the one that says: 

"When Bush Took Office, Gas was $1.46".

Since Bush took office, gas has jumped to as high as three times that price or more.  Food for thought.

And Bush was the one who was supposed to be able to provide us with low cost oil because both he and Cheney are oil men, and Bush regularly holds hands and exchanges kisses with the Saudis.

Even if we do drill for more oil here, that is no quick fix for actually finding the close to 70% of our total oil consumption that we currently import.  (On the other hand, had we emphasized increased fuel efficiency mandates, we could have improved our gas mileage to the point that we would be getting 50 mpg, instead of the 20 mpg average that we are currently getting.  That alone would have reduced our consumption of oil by 60% and almost eliminated our dependance on foreign oil.)  And we currently have the technology to build 150 mpg hybrid vehicles.  Click on the link below for more details:

http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2008/01/13/074940.html

Of course, the geniuses in Detroit refuse to build high mpg vehicles, choosing instead to build gas guzzlers, which have caused GM to lose more than $15 Billion this last quarter.  (Auto sales in the US were at a 16 year low in July.)  (Exxon Mobil, on the other hand, has had a record second quarter profit of almost $11.68 Billion, eclipsing its previous record of $11.66 Billion two quarters ago, and its previous quarter profits of $10.9 Billion.  In 2005 Exxon Mobil's annual revenue was $371 Billion.  In comparison, Saudi Arabia's estimated 2005 gross domestic product was $340.5 billion, according to statistics maintained by the Central Intelligence Agency.)  You can find the article with the details below: (finding the article by searching for Exxon Mobil Record Profits is still hard to find, because Exxon Mobil has set more record profits than any other company in the country.)

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/01/30/business/main1253326.shtml

Royal Dutch Shell PLC also reported a record profit quarter of $11.6 Billion.

And the U.S. oil industry has increased their overall revenues to $82.9 Billion this quarter, surpassing $56.1 Billion a year ago.  Their profit from all of that?  $51.5 Billion.  That's right.  That's their PROFIT.   Click on the link below for details:

http://money.aol.com/news/articles/_a/bbdp/big-oils-biggest-quarter-ever-515b-in/107005?cid=5

And it was the Reagan and Bush Administrations that imposed the offshore oill drilling bans in the first place, which Bush Jr. just reversed (six months before leaving office).

If he really wanted to drill for more, why hadn't he taken that action sooner?

And why is it that the oil companies haven't been drilling in the 68 million acres that they already controlled prior to the reversal of the oil drilling ban? 

Could it be because they could demand higher prices as long as they kept oil supplies low?

And of course, you can't use the oil until it is refined, and Bush and the Republican Party had complete control of the Congress for the first six years of Bush's terms, so why hadn't they taken action to increase the number of refineries when they had that control?

Could it be that the oil companies just didn't want to build the refineries because they could keep the gas prices high while they continued to blame someone else for causing it?     

So much for McCain's straight talk and running a clean campaign.

Signs probably won't be made available until after the Vice Presidential candidate is selected to join the ticket. 

Check out updates from the Obama Campaign at www.MyBarackObama.com 

July 29, 2008

Milwaukee County Dems Meeting held on July 28, 2008 at the Pettit Center

Milwaukee County D.A. John Chisholm spoke to the attendees and informed us that the Bush Administration has cut funding for Federal Prosecutors as of 2009.  Only $150 million has been provided for the entire United States.  However, the Bush Administration provides $750 million for foreign countries.

Milwaukee has 120 assistant DAs.  40 are federally funded, so those positions will disappear in 2009.

Milwaukee County Supervisors Willie Johnson and Chris Larson spoke to the attendees as well.

In 98 days, there will be a Referendum on the ballot on the Quality of Life, which removes $67 million of taxes off of property tax rolles and is transferred to sales tax.  The money collected will be spent on the public transportation system and fix the park system (which has had its budget cut by Milw. County Executive Scott Walker).  One third of the money from sales tax comes from outside of the county, as opposed to the property tax, which comes from residents exclusively.  Mark Belling is against it.  Dems are for it.  'nuf said.

Announcements:

Milwaukee County is offering absentee ballots to members of the military and people in hospitals.  The last day to vote by mail is August 20, by 5:00 p.m. (postmarked).  (This is for the September 9 primaries.)

Resolutions Announced: 2 were submitted and unanimously approved.

The first was a resolution against bombing Iran.  Senator Kohl has sent a letter to President Bush telling him that he does not have the authority to bomb Iran without getting authority from Congress.  There is a bill in Congress, HR 5056, which is attempting to pass into law to prevent President Bush from bombing Iran before he leaves office.  It also would prevent him from taking any other ations, which by international law, would be considered acts of war and incite Iran to take military action, thus goading them into firing the first shot.

The second was a resolution to strip Senator Joe Lieberman of his Democratic Status (he ran as an Independent, but still switches back to calling himself a Democrat when it is convenient, and is still a member of the Democratic Party).

Candidates who are running for office spoke to the attendees.

Joe Szarneski, running for Milw Cty Clerk, member of Local 212, MATC political science teacher

Jim "Luigi" Schimdt, running for Milw Cty Clerk, father was President of AFL-CIO, supported by Mayor Tom Barrett, and DA John Chisholm.

Suzette Emmer, running for Milw Cty Clerk, currently Deputy Administrator of the Elections Commission and Special Registration Deputy. (Reminded us of the glitch in the Voter Database that kicks names out of the database if they aren't entered exactly as they are shown on their Driver's License.  That isn't expected to be fixed until next year.)

Glen Brower, running for 21st AD.  Has a September 17 event at the American Legion, with guest speaker Lieutenant Governor Barbara Lawton (check with his campaign for details).  Wants to move for a County 1% tax.

Dave Hucke, running for 14th AD, opposing Vukmir.  He is endorsed by AFSME.

Richard Badger, running for 16th AD, running in the primary opposing Leon Young. (has support from members of the Milwaukee County Dems, but not endorsed)

Andy Parker, also running for the 16th AD

Sandy Pasche, running for the 22nd AD, to fill Sheldon Wasserman's vacated seat.  She is endorsed by D.A. John Chisholm.  Assistant Professor at Columbia College of Nursing for 15 years.  Coordinator of Milwaukee's Crises Intervention Team.  Milwaukee Mental Health Task Force; on boards of the American Red Cross, Advocates for Education and Whitefish Bay Soccer Club.  Elected for 4 terms as President of the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Greater Milwaukee. 

Other Announcements:

This Sunday Senator Feingold is having a picnic at 2200 West Pierce $25

September 13 Mayor Tom Barrett is hosting his annual Zoo Event. 6:30 p.m. Free food and drinks.

July 28, 2008

DPW Administrative Committee Moves to Endorse Real Democrats Rather than Fakes that Tom Reynolds ( R ) Cooked Up to Run Against Them

In addition to the Vote to remove Ms. Bartoshevich as a Delegate to the National Convention, the Administrative Committee took up other business.  That of clarifying, by endorsement, a Real Democrat, rather than the Fakes that are running against them as Democrats.

As the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported:

'The state Democratic Party's Administrative Committee on Friday endorsed one Assembly incumbent, Rep. Gary Sherman of Port Wing, against his September primary challenger.

And, state Party Chairman Joe Wineke said, the same committee may soon convene again to offer the same endorsements to six Assembly Democrats from Milwaukee County who face intra-party opponents.

This year is different because "conservatives, if not outright Republicans" filed nomination papers to run as Democrats, Sherman told his fellow Democratic Party leaders during a conference call meeting Friday.
And, when non-Democrats line up to challenge one-of-us-Democrats, Sherman added, "We have a right to defend the integrity of our (party nomination) process."

State Democratic Party leaders groused that some of the conservative challengers to the good-old-Democrats had been put up to it by former Republican state Sen. Tom Reynolds of West Allis, although linking a specific candidate to Reynolds can be hard to prove. The mischief-making Reynolds lost his re-election bid in 2006.

The six incumbent Democrats with challengers in the September primary are: Reps. Annette "Polly" Williams AD10, Pedro Colon  AD8, Tony Staskunas AD15, Leon Young AD16, Barbara Toles AD17 and Christine Sinicki AD20. Together, they have served 75 years in the Assembly.'

(The Assembly Districts, Incumbents and theiir challengers are:

In State Assembly District 8:

Pedro Colon Democratic Incumbent (Democrat in good standing):
Challengers running as Democrats: Laura L. Manriquez (legitimate Democratic Challenger in good standing), and Jose Guzman (fake funded by Tom Reynold's Republican Clean Sweep)

State Assembly District 10
Annette Polly Williams Incumbent (no information)
Challenger running as Democrat: Charisha Allen (fake funded by Tom Reynold's Republican Clean Sweep)

State Assembly District 15
Tony Staskunas Incumbent (Democrat in good standing):
Challenger running as a Democrat: Josh Hoisington (fake funded by Tom Reynold's Republican Clean Sweep)

State Assembly District 16
Leon D. Young Incumbent (Doesn’t show up at Democratic events and not a member of the Democratic Party.)
Challengers running as Democrats: Andy Parker (legitimate challenger), Richard M. Badger (legitimate challenger) and David D. King (fake funded by Tom Reynold's Republican Clean Sweep)

State Assembly District 17
Barbara L. Toles Incumbent (Democrat in good standing)
Challenger running as Democrat: Samantha H. Bady (fake funded by Tom Reynold's Republican Clean Sweep)

State Assembly District 20
Christine M. Sinicki Incumbent (hasn’t paid her Democratic Party dues for awhile)
Challengers running as Democrats: Steve Sutherland (no information), and Philip Landowski (fake funded by Tom Reynold's Republican Clean Sweep)

In order for the DPW's Administrative Committee to take up the issue of endorsing the six Milwaukee County incumbents against their challengers, the Milwaukee County Democratic Party will need to draft a request of the Administrative Committee to do so.

But it certainly appears that Republicans can't run on their record anymore, and some aren't even running as members of their own party because of their lack of electability, when connected to the Grand Oil Party.

Don't fall for fake Democrats. 

(Democrats in good standing are those members who are active with the Democratic Party and have paid their dues.)

Update: The Milwaukee County Democratic Party has not endorsed any candidates for these seats at this time, but it is being taken up by the Milwaukee County Party Executive Committee.

We are asking that the individuals funded by Tom Reynold’s “Clean Sweep” organization NOT be supported by Democrats, because they are considered FAKE democrats, (who are really conservatives running as Democrats rather than as Republicans because they couldn’t otherwise get elected).

Martha Love, Chair of the Milwaukee County Democratic Party is not willing to endorse candidates at this time, even those who are incumbent Democrats, if they are not Democrats in good standing. That means that they need to be fully paid up members of the Democratic Party and working with the local Democratic Party in their districts.

ARTICLE VIII - Endorsements of Candidates in Primary Elections The state organization, congressional district organizations, county organizations, the College Democrats of Wisconsin, the youth caucus, and all other subdivisions at any level of the state organization are prohibited from endorsing or supporting any candidate in a Democratic presidential preference election or any partisan primary election which will determine the candidate of the Democratic Party for the ensuing election to office unless the county or local Democratic group or congressional district recommends a certain candidate (or candidates) be endorsed or supported due to unusual circumstances and these circumstances be submitted in writing to the state Administrative Committee in a timely manner for approval of an endorsement and support of a specific candidate (or candidates) for a specific reason and the Administrative Committee approves said recommendation by a two-thirds majority.  (Democratic Party of Wisconsin Constitution and By-Laws)

Fred Kessler has asked that members support all of the incumbent Democrats, but there are some districts that are being contested by legitimate Democratic challengers. Those are the individuals who are not being backed by Tom Reynold’s “Clean Sweep” organization.

We will update you as we get more information.

Clean Sweep Wisconsin PAC was created and is operated by Tom Reynolds. The address for the PAC is the same as his voting address and his printing business, Endeavor Press: 9430 W Schlinger Avenue, West Allis

All of the challengers to the Milwaukee area incumbents have all received in-kind contributions from Clean Sweep Wisconsin and except for Landowski (and King) all have done business with Endeavor Press and owe that business money, which is owned by Tom Reynolds.

July 25, 2008

McCain Campaign Takes Advantage of a Neophyte. Hillary Delegate Violates Terms of her Elected Position.  DPW Moves to Replace Her.

Results of the DPW Administrative Committee Meeting

Friday July 25, 2008

Credentials Challenge to remove Debra Bartoshevich from the Democratic National Convention roll as a Delegate and replace her with the person from her district with the next highest vote total.

To recap the events that led to this action:

On Friday, June 13, 2008 Joe Wineke, the Chair for the State Democratic Party of Wisconsin was informed by Craig Gilbert of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, that a Hillary Clinton Delegate from the 1st CD, had publicly endorsed Senator John McCain. This information was repeated on the radio and printed in the newspapers around the country. In addition, there was a television interview with Ms. Bartoshevich where she also endorsed Senator McCain. This information was released near the opening of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin’s State Convention. It was determined by State Democratic Party officials that we needed to deal with this issue as quickly as possible and a resolution was drafted to request that the Democratic National Committee remove Ms. Bartoshevich as a delegate to the National Convention.

The information was quickly spread throughout the delegates at the DPW State Convention and the resolution was read. It passed unanimously.

The challenge and petition signed by sixteen DPW members was filed on behalf of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin to two of the three Co-Chairs of the Rules and Bylaws Committee on June 24, 2008 with copies to the DPW Chair and to Ms. Bartoshevich.

On July 9, 2008 the Co-Chairs of the Rules and Bylaws Committee responded to the challenge and petition and deferred the matter to the Wisconsin Democratic Party Administrative Committee, to make the determination, pursuant to Rule 7(A) of Rules of Procedure of the Credentials Committee.

The DPW Party officers contacted the members of the Administrative Committee and Ms. Bartoshevich to give Ms. Bartoshevich an opportunity to draft a response to the challenge and petition, and to schedule a date where a quorum of the Administrative Committee and Ms. Bartoshevich could meet (we did so via conference call to hear her response), so that the Administrative Committee could vote on the matter.

On July 25, 2008 at 12:30 p.m. we held the conference call to discuss the facts and hear Ms. Bartoshevich’s defense and request to remain a delegate from the DPW.

Jason Rae, DNC member, read the petition and challenge which was previously submitted to the RBC of the DNC.

It reads, in part:

Attached is a challenge and petition filed on behalf of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.

Through this filing, we challenge the credentials of Ms. Debra Bartoshevich, elected as a delegate to Senator Hillary Clinton to the Democratic National Convention from Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District.

The petition requests that the RBC removes Ms. Bartoshevich from the convention roll and replace her with the next highest vote getter in the caucus, Ms. Marilyn Nemeth.

This challenge proceeds on two grounds:

First, Ms. Bartoshevich violated Article II.B in the Call to the Convention. By supporting Senator McCain, a candidate other than the nominee of the Democratic National Convention, she violated the Call, and

Second, Ms. Bartoshevich violated Article II.C in the Call to the Convention. By supporting Senator McCain, she did not have the best interests and welfare of the Democratic Party in mind.

Ms. Bartoshevich was then given an opportunity to respond.

She claimed that because she didn’t know what the rules of the Call to Convention were and “never received any Democratic rules and By-Laws or the Call to the Convention. The Democratic Party of Wisconsin never communicated to me regarding any statements I was allowed to make.”

(She was later reminded that delegate training and the information regarding what delegates’ responsibilities were, were widely available. Counties across the state held delegate trainings, and all of the information regarding delegate duties and responsibilities was posted on the State DPW website. She could just as easily have located that information, or asked her county or congressional district officers for that information. In fact, in order to acquire the Notice of Intent / Affidavit that she had to fill in and sign in order to be considered for election as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention, she had to either ask for a copy from a Democratic Party official or staff person, or print it out from the document that it was part of – which happened to be the Delegate Selection Plan which had all the rules in it. If she was unaware of the rules or didn’t understand what she was signing when she asked for or signed the affidavit, then she should have asked, but she didn’t).

She still continued to hold the position that because she wasn’t specifically contacted and given the information, that she shouldn’t be held responsible for her actions.

She further went on to claim that since she was a supporter of Senator Clinton, she didn’t feel that she had done anything to harm the best interests of the Democratic Party by her actions. She went on to claim that she was one of 18 million voters who supported Senator Clinton, and acted as if she somehow had the right to speak for all of them.

She falsely stated “Would you take away my delegate status because I believe in our forefather’s philosophy and continue to support Senator Hillary Clinton?”

She isn’t being removed as a delegate because of her support for Senator Clinton. Senator Clinton has all of her delegates still intact and they will be attending the Democratic National Convention, with one exception, that being Ms. Bartoshevich, that I am aware of. Ms. Bartoshevich was challenged as a delegate because she endorsed a Republican and did so in a way that violated the rules granting her delegate status, injuring the Democratic Party in the process. That is why she was stripped of her delegate status, and was replaced by the person with the next highest number of votes from her Congressional District – who is also female and also a Senator Clinton supporter.

She also claimed that she had the right to vote for whomever she chose as she felt was the best candidate regardless of party affiliation. While that is true for any average individual, it is not true for any elected Party official. In order to maintain unity and keep the party strong, we expect that Democratic Party elected officials put their personal differences aside and support and vote for the candidate who has received the greatest number of votes within the party, as a result of the primary election. They aren’t just voting for themselves. They represent the people who voted for them, who support Democratic candidates. Without that requirement, there would be chaos, and a fragmented party, if it were to continue to exist at all.

It was pointed out to her that in order for her to be considered as a candidate for election as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention, she had to file a notice of intent to the State Democratic Party Headquarters, which was also an affidavit, stating that she supported Democratic principles and Democratic candidates and would support the Democratic Party’s Presidential nominee in November. She claimed that she didn’t remember reading the terms or signing the affidavit.

Throughout her presentation and the question and answer period, she repeatedly referred to the Democratic Party as the “Democrat Party”. When she was repeatedly asked to refrain from doing so, and refer to us as the Democratic Party, which is our proper name, she said that she didn’t understand what we were talking about. This, in spite of the fact that using the phrase “The Democrat Party” is a popular method that Republicans like Bush and Limbaugh use to derisively speak about or to Democrats. This comes from a campaign smear ad that rolled Democrat across the TV screen and then froze on the last three letters, which were enlarged to fill the screen. She continued to use the term “Democrat Party” repeatedly throughout the discussion which lasted almost an hour in spite of our corrections.

Someone who is either that new to the Democratic Party or who is so insensitive to not understand what is considered a taunt against Democratic Party activists, and refuses to refer to the Party that she claims to belong to by its proper name, clearly does not have the experience or the qualifications to represent us at the Democratic National Convention.

Why? Not just because she doesn’t know the proper name. But because it should be clear that she is improperly using this term, without knowing or understanding it, along with the fact that so many of her “problems” with the Democratic Party are based on arguments that have been falsely perpetuated in the right wing media, which uses the term “Democrat Party” phraseology. Whenever you hear someone making political arguments, you can tell where they got their information from based on the phrases, jargon, and types of arguments that they make. She’s getting most of the information that she is basing her decisions on from right wingers, not from the Democratic Party or Democratic Party activists or supporters, and her arguments repeatedly demonstrated that. That’s why she does not have the background, education or experience to represent Democrats, particularly at the level of the National Convention.

She also claimed that what had happened was a minor mistake, easily made by someone with as little experience with the Democratic Party structure or its rules as she has. It was pointed out to her that her “little mistake” was played up in newspapers, radio and TV across the country and did major damage to the Democratic Party. She refused to acknowledge the extent of the damage and continued to claim that since she didn’t know what she did, it shouldn’t count.

She also complained that she hadn’t found out about the challenge and petition to remove her as a delegate directly from the Democratic Party until after she heard about it in the media.

She failed to recognize that she had made her endorsement to the media before contacting any officers in the Democratic Party to discuss the matter, and when it was reported to the officers and members of the Democratic Party at the State Convention, by reporters, that the State Party response was also immediately reported by the media before our written documents were sent to her. Even when this was pointed out to her, her response was “I didn’t know about that conference call, I wasn’t invited to it.” Keep in mind that what was described to her and what she referred to as a “conference call”, was not a “conference call” but rather our state convention. If she was really a staunch Democrat and had such a strong interest in the Democratic Party as she claimed to have, then she might have taken an interest in getting involved in the party at a local level, asked to get involved at the Congressional District or State Convention level, and attended those events to voice her concerns rather than running to the media to endorse a Republican.

She further defended her actions by claiming that she hadn’t joined the Citizens for McCain website as had been reported, even though the news reports said that she had said that she had been urged to join the McCain campaign by her sister. During the call, she claimed that she hadn’t joined the campaign and shouldn’t have been listed as a member, even though she also stated that “many Clinton supporters had gone to the McCain website to blog, and had to sign up in order to blog”, and that she only did it to blog on their website. Apparently, she didn’t feel that that was hurting the Democratic Party either.

She claimed that she hadn’t approached the McCain campaign, but that they had approached her for comments. But then how would they have known that she was a Clinton Delegate, and approached her unless she or her sister had provided them with information indicating that she supported McCain and was a Clinton Delegate? The fact that she went on to immediately endorse McCain publicly in the media only validated that she was supportive of him, even while she still claimed to be such a staunch supporter of Senator Clinton’s.

But as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention, she was specifically barred from making any public endorsements for any candidates other than those chosen by the delegates at the Democratic National Convention or other Democratic Party candidates. She violated that by endorsing a Republican.

She was asked to give a yes or no answer to a simple question. Would she support and vote for the Democratic nominee for President of the United States regardless of who that candidate was? She initially refused to answer that question.  And even later still refused to give a yes or no answer to the question.

She was asked by several Clinton and Edwards delegates on the Administrative Committee, who told her that they had not originally supported Obama either, why it was that she would endorse McCain, when many Clinton supporters had already switched their support to Senator Barack Obama as Senator Clinton had asked them to, when she ended her campaign. Her response was, “Well, I just can’t switch my support for one candidate to another within two weeks like you can. I am a staunch supporter of Hillary Clinton and it takes time.”

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported one of the exchanges as:

‘But asked whether she would support the party's presidential nominee, Bartoshevich said: "I'm still getting to know Senator Obama. . . . It's very difficult for me in two weeks, or less than that, to switch my support and be 100% behind somebody. . . . I would like to go to the convention and listen to Barack Obama."

"I didn't run to the McCain campaign; they called me," she said. She said her sister put her name on the McCain campaign Web site.

But Democratic veteran Dottie LeClaire of Appleton told Bartoshevich: "You reached right back and hugged them. I have a problem with that."

LeClaire said she had backed former Sen. John Edwards for president, but she and other rank-and-file Democrats are now backing Obama in the interest of party unity.’


Ms. Bartoshevich was then reminded that Senator Clinton suspended her campaign on June 7, 2008 and publicly told her supporters to support Senator Obama at that time. Ms. Bartoshevich’s endorsement for Senator McCain was made public on June 13, 2008, which also meant that she had signed up on McCain’s website before that date, so she was able to make a switch in a week or less when it came to publicly endorsing a Republican, rather than Obama.

What is puzzling here, is that Senator Clinton’s and Senator Obama’s positions and platforms, and their voting records are very similar, with the one major difference being their position on supporting the War in Iraq, while both Clinton and Obama are very different from McCain. So why would she suddenly jump to support McCain? Has she no understanding of McCain’s positions? Or did she really know them all along?

She went on to say that she didn’t like the way the media picked on Senator Clinton and gave her so much negative press. (The Democratic Party had nothing to do with that, she needs to take that up with the media. And if the media was really controlled by Democrats, don’t you think that Senator Clinton, who had long been considered the odds on favorite to sweep the primaries, would have had much more favorable press? She’s certainly been more influential in the Democratic Party than her rival, and her husband certainly had more pull. On the other hand, people like right wing hate mongers, Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter have long been telling their listeners to vote for Senator Clinton, instead of voting for McCain. Since the primaries were long over for Republicans, it is not only plausible that Republicans were crossing over to vote for Senator Clinton after the Republican Primary was over, but it has in fact been proven by polling large numbers of voters – in double digit percentages - who stated that they were Republicans voting for Clinton.)

Ms. Bartoshevich also said that she didn’t like the fact that Speaker Pelosi and DNC Chairman Howard Dean had urged the delegates and super delegates to make up their minds and end the primary quickly. (That only makes sense. You don’t want to drag out a primary and give your Republican rival more ammunition to use against you while Democrats are spending their money bashing one another rather than against Republicans. Senator Clinton raised $250 million in contributions and was still $20-30 million in debt. How much of that money was spent going after Republicans? Not much. Pelosi and Dean didn’t tell delegates and super delegates whom to vote for. They just wanted them to make up their minds so that they could stop the hemorrhaging, and start going after Republicans.) So then, why would Ms.Bartoshevich take this out on Senator Obama? How is he to blame for that?

She said that she didn’t know much about Senator Obama’s position and platform and hadn’t spent any time researching them, until after she had made her public endorsement of McCain!! She said that she wanted an opportunity to go to the Democratic National Convention so that Senator Obama could convince her to support him. How could she have made a choice and made any endorsements without at least doing some basic research on all of their campaigns?

She claimed that she had not intended to join the McCain campaign. She was asked if she had asked the McCain campaign to remove her name from their website as a supporter. She didn’t answer that question, other than to say that she hadn’t gone to the website recently to see if she was still listed there. I visited the website in question, “Citizens for McCain” which is led by one of the biggest Benedict Arnolds to the Democratic Party out there – Senator Joe Lieberman. Along with Lieberbush’s endorsement of McCain, there is a large picture on the front page of the website, of a woman holding a Hillary poster, with McCain bumper stickers plastered all over it. As of July 25, 2008, Ms. Bartoshevich’s name is still on the website, on a posting from June 14, 2008, listing her as “a prominent Democrat, a Delegate for Hillary Clinton from Wisconsin, supporting McCain”. Well she isn’t a prominent Democrat, (she only recently got involved with the party to support Hillary according to her own statements), and she sure isn’t a delegate anymore.

She also claimed that she was misquoted regarding her support for McCain. She was asked, if that were the case, whether she had attempted to retract her comments or ask to have them corrected. She didn’t answer that either.

In the end, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin’s Administrative Committee voted on upholding the challenge and petition to remove Ms. Bartoshevich as a delegate to the National Convention, or to accept her response to the challenge. The Administrative Committee voted unanimously to uphold the votes of the Delegates at the Democratic Party of Wisconsin’s State Convention, who also voted unanimously, to remove Ms. Bartoshevich as a delegate.



When you are talking about Democratic Party Delegates, they are elected representatives for a political party, and they are expected to represent the people who elected them and whom they represent. Ms. Bartoshevich didn’t represent the 18 million people that voted for Senator Clinton, as she continued to claim. Senator Clinton won those votes. Ms. Bartoshevich didn’t. Ms. Bartoshevich was elected by other delegates who were elected at the County level and who voted among themselves to determine which of them would represent them at the National Convention. She also represented 1000 voters from her district who voted for a Democratic Governor in the 2006 election (which is how the number and distribution of delegates are chosen from across the state). And she didn’t bother to ask the people she was elected to represent if they minded if she endorsed a Republican, instead of supporting a Democrat as she was elected to do.

The point that everyone needs to understand, is that being a delegate to the National Convention is not a right. It is a privilege. Something that even long time Democratic activists and politicians have yet to gain access to, in spite of their long record of service. Ms. Bartoshevich gained that access out of luck, not by right. And then she threw it away because she refused to accept the responsibility that came with it.

Those who are elected to that position need to take it seriously. They need to take the time and make the effort to find out what their duties and obligations are, and understand that they are being put under the microscope.

They are expected to follow the rules and do whatever they can to support and build the party; not to tear it down, regardless of their level of experience.

In order for the Democratic Party to be able to undo the damage of the Bush Administration, they need to have a super majority in the Congress as well as winning the White House. They can’t change the laws without that.

If we continue with a stalemate in Congress, nothing will move forward.

If a Republican gets elected to the White House, even if Democrats win Congress; as President he can veto their bills, unless Democrats have a super majority of at least 2/3rds in each house to override his vetoes. That is why we are in the position that we are in now, not being able to accomplish much legislatively.

If Republicans get enough of a majority in Congress that they can override a Democratic Presidential veto, Democrats still lose.

And if Republicans gain control of the Congress as well as winning the White House, you can say hello to another Bush term and good bye to America as we once knew it.

Senator Lieberman lost his Super Delegate status for his endorsement of a Republican endorsed by Bush. Lieberman changes back and forth between claiming to be a Democrat and an Independent - which ever happens to be convenient for him at the time. Now it is rumored that he might be a candidate for VP with McCain. With all of the hugs and kisses he’s exchanged with Bush, it’s a surprise he hasn’t just put the R after his name already, except that by claiming to be an Democrat or Independent he stands a better chance of getting more votes from those demographics than if he just admitted that he was a Republican. And hardly anyone even remembers who Zell Miller was anymore, other than he had challenged Chris Matthews to a duel after his betrayal of the Democratic Party during the last campaign.

Ms. Bartoshevich clearly ignored her duties to the people who voted for her to represent them, in order to demand her right to her own positions, regardless of who it damaged. She didn’t or wouldn’t understand that in order to be an elected delegate to the Democratic Party that she was expected to support Democratic Candidates, even if they aren’t her first choice, because it is the choice of the people she represents.

This isn’t exclusive to the Democratic Party. I’m sure that any other political party expects the same of their elected delegates. Republican elected officials or talking heads who have made far less injurious statements, have been viciously attacked by their own right wing supporters and booted out of office, or fired from their jobs and had their careers ruined. Removing Ms. Bartoshevich’s credentials is a slap on the wrist in comparison.

It is clear that to a great extent, Ms. Bartoshevich was used by the McCain campaign to boost their ratings and win over Clinton supporters, even though they knew that she would lose her credentials because of it, just as Lieberman and Miller had. They knew she would be hurt by this, even if she didn’t, but they used her anyway, in order to win votes for McCain.

But this has always been part of the Bush/McCain/Rove strategy, and it is a recurrent theme in Republican politics. That should tell you volumes about McCain’s character.

Ms. Bartoshevich should have known better and recognized she was being used. She didn’t.

And that is probably the best reason for her not to be in a position of leadership in the Democratic Party.

June 13, 2008

The DPW Administrative Committee met prior to the beginning of the State Convention for the DPW and approved the following Delegates and Alternates for the Democratic National Convention in Denver.  These are in addition to the Delegates and Alternates who were elected at the Congressional District levels.

Unpledged Add-On Delegates

1 Linda Honold - Clinton

2 Walter Kunicki - Obama

At-Large Delegates

Obama Delegates

1 Jessica Doyle

2 Guy Constello

3 Molly Rivera

4 Gov. Marty Schreiber

5 Katie Boyce

6 Marwell Santiago

7 Sara Rogers

8 Bethany Ordaz

9 Beverly Jenkins

Clinton Delegates

1 Paula Dorsey

2 Nabella Baig

3 Cris Selin

4 Gloria Villenova

5 Jack Kreuger

6 Nancy Nusbaum

7 Shawn Pfaff

At-Large Alternates

Obama Alternates

1 Ingird Ankerson

2 Harold Jackson

Clinton Alternates

1 Kira Brenner

2 Mark Boswell

Pledged Party Leaders and Elected Officials

Obama Delegates

1 Mayor Tom Barrett

2 Sen. Russ Decker

3 Rep. Mark Pocan

4 Rep. Pedro Colon

5 Mayor Dave Cieslewicz

6 Martha Love

Clinton Delegates

1 Lt. Gov Barbara Lawton

2 Dane Co. Exec. kathleen Falk

3 Heather Colburn

4 Jan Banicki

May 4, 2008 

Results of the 5th CD Caucus - Delegates Elected for Senator Obama and Senator Clinton

There were 63 Delegates for Obama, (one additional person attended as a guest); and 21 Delegates for Clinton, in attendance. We had two staffers from the DPW helping us to run the proceedings, which appeared to run fairly well. We had no complaints filed, and in speaking with those individuals who were present, but had issues regarding the 1st Tier Caucus, they were satisfied with how things were handled to resolve the earlier issues and in how the 2nd Tier Caucus was run.

The results for the 5th CD Caucus were as follows:

Elected Delegates for Hillary: 1 male - Shah Haqqi, 1 female - Charlene Brady
Elected Delegates for Barack Obama: 2 males - Frank Shansky and Larry Nelson, 1 female - Leslie Jorgensen, 1 male alternate - Dr. Mushir Hassan

Congratulations to the winning Delegates and Alternate. Thank you for representing Wisconsin and the 5th CD at the Democratic National Convention in Denver this August.

A big thank you to the Waukesha Dems and Waukesha Labor Temple and staff who hosted the event at their facility.

Thanks to the 5th CD Officers: Doug Cvetkovich, Vice-Chair; Roger Sands, Acting Secretary; Suzanne Davidson, Treasurer; Ann Weber, Secretary (who was instrumental in setting up the arrangements for the caucus, but was unable to attend because of her medical problems – we wish her the best, and pray for her quick recovery); Jeanne Nakamoto, who ran the Obama Sub-Caucus as Convener; and State HQ Staff, Rachel, (who did double duty by also running the Clinton Sub-Caucus as Convener); and KJ Hansmann for helping keep us on task and on time and providing us with the necessary documents and needed guidance.

Thanks also to Victor Weers who provided the refreshments.

A Great Big Thank You to Jim McGuigan, who ran around during the breaks, collecting donations and distributing the “Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers” DVDs to the many people who picked up copies so that they can be better informed and prepared to provide accurate documentation to people who still wrongly believe that the Iraq War is about freedom, rather than about illegal and immoral War Profiteering by Bush Campaign Donors.

A big thank you to all the people who picked up the DVDs. Your assistance in helping our organization and getting the word out by showing the DVDs to as many people as possible between now and the general election can make the difference between getting us out of this quagmire, or staying stuck in it for another 100 years.

And last, but not least: Thank You, THANK YOU to all of the Delegates and Alternates who took time out of their busy lives to make a commitment to our Democratic Process and help to insure that the Democracy that our Founding Fathers envisioned is protected by the ongoing involvement of regular, everyday people, just like it was intended to be.

You epitomize by example, the duties and responsibilities of Americans by being part of the electoral process, and showing up, when others leave the job to someone else.

Minutes of the 5th CD Democratic Party Convention

Minutes of the Wisconsin 5th Congressional District Democrats
2008 Convention
April 13, 2008

• The meeting of the 5th CD Democrats was called to order at 2:00 PM at Libby Montana’s Restaurant in Mequon by Chair Les Nakamoto. 29 members and one guest were present.

• Les made some opening remarks. First, he introduced the officers. He asked for a volunteer to serve on the Credentials Committee at the upcoming state convention, and explained the duties. Jeannie Nakamoto agreed to serve in that role. He also asked for a volunteer to serve on the rules committee; Jim Shinners volunteered for the position. (Both have since been approved by the Administrative Committee of the DPW.) We also need a Vice-Chair. The person must be from a different county than the Chair’s (Washington Co.) Other openings are Platform and Resolutions Committee Representative (3 year term); Platform and Resolutions Alternate (1 year term) and Assistant to the Secretary and Treasurer (temporary position).

• Les also noted that the 5th CD Party website ( www.Wisc5thCDDems.com ) is a good way to keep on top of CD party news. He urged people to make a minimum donation to the 5th CD DPW of $12 and receive a free premium, an Iraq War DVD titled, “Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers”, which were available at the check-in table. It is a documentary by Robert Greenwald which provides detailed eyewitness accounts of former employees and military who saw the wanton abuse of the Bush Administration’s no-bid contracts, by Bush supporters who received those contracts, to supply goods and services to the U.S. military, and supplied contaminated water, spoiled food, and overpriced “services” at taxpayer expense. It shows not only the pattern of corruption and theft of tens if not hundreds of Billions of dollars by Bush loyalists, but also shows how the Republican Congress repeatedly covered up the abuses, and voted against legislation that would punish contractors who abused the system. This is the video that the Republican Controlled Congress refused to be shown to the Congress during testimony by Robert Greenwald. See it and you will understand why. Show it to your friends and neighbors and anyone who is truly interested in having our government do the right thing. This is what Senator McCain wants to continue for 50-100 years. The movie shows why it must stop.

• A brief discussion ensued about the timing of the payment of party dues. The current system leaves many members confused about when their payment is due. All party dues are based on the calendar year regardless of when your dues are paid. Dues should be renewed in January of each year. The only exception to this is if you pay your dues in October, November or December of the year, in which case, the entire following years dues are also included in that membership fee. Yolanda Kosionowski suggested a resolution to pay dues in a particular month, and it would be the same month every year. Les clarified that somebody would need to write a floor resolution to present at the State Party convention and explained how that could be done.


However, the proposal would have to go to the Constitution Committee and the Administrative Committee in order for it to be adopted as a rule. So the best we can do at this point is just to make people aware of the proper procedures, and help them keep their dues up to date so that they won’t lose out on opportunities to be elected as delegates to the CD and State Conventions, and vote at those Conventions, or hold elective office in the party. This is particularly important at the CD and State Conventions, since the officers running those conventions need to have delegate lists submitted to them by the County party officers, at a minimum of 14 days prior to the CD and State Convention by Constitutional requirement.

• In order to validate your delegate status, you have to be a paid up member of the Party, and if the checks or credit card charges have not been validated by the banks and the statement received by the State HQ prior to that deadline, you will not be allowed delegate status at those conventions. Because of banking procedures and bulk processing, banks only provide one statement per month with verification of checks or credit cards having cleared. Anyone interested in being a delegate to either CD or State Conventions should make sure that their memberships are paid up two to three months prior to the conventions, to make sure that their payments have cleared and they are on the State HQ lists, because of the banking delays.

• This happens repeatedly every year at the state convention, and we would like to make sure that we can avoid this as much as possible. Anyone interested in being a delegate to the CD or State Conventions, needs to verify with their County officers that they are on the lists and that their memberships are paid up and validated at the CD and State levels. County Chairs and CD Chairs get the lists of paid membership each month. County Chairs get lists back from the State HQ indicating who has been validated as delegates, alternates or guests after the original lists from the County Chairs have been submitted to the State HQ. Members should verify that they are on the list and properly listed as delegates, alternates or guests to avoid any difficulty getting credentialed at the Conventions.

• Treasurer’s Report: Treasurer Suzanne Davidson gave the report. Since the 07 convention we received $200 from the DPW; $200 in contributions from the last convention; and $650 in personal contributions. We paid out $323 in expenses. It was moved and seconded to accept the report; the motion carried unanimously.

• New Business
• Pamphlets were distributed from Grass Roots North Shore which list their activities and programs. A Global Warming program is set for April 17.
• June Eastwood announced that a Sustainability Fair will be held at Wellspring near Newburg on April 26 from 9-1. Everyone is invited to attend.
• Secretary Ann Meyers read a statement from former 5th CD Democratic Candidate for Congress, Bryan Kennedy, in which he endorsed Jim Burkee for Congress. Bryan’s concern is that since the 5th CD as been “gerrymandered” or districted so that only a Republican has a reasonable chance of being elected, that the only way to remove Representative Sensenbrenner, is to beat him in the primary with a moderate Republican, who Democrats would find more reasonable to deal with.
• Burkee is a Republican running against Sensenbrenner in the primary. Yolanda recounted that she has known Burkee from childhood and that he has spoken to the Southwest Region (Milwaukee County) Dems and was well-received. Suzanne noted that the Constitution reads that we are not to endorse anyone but a Democrat. A discussion of having a “better than Sensenbrenner” Republican holding the office until a strong Democrat could be elected later ensued. Les noted that after redistricting in 2012, things may change, but that while every individual member is free to decide whomever they choose to support, the County and CD Party organizations are prevented from endorsing Democratic candidates during the primaries, and should not endorse Independents or Republicans given that there may be Democrats who decide to run at a later date. In addition, any ballots which have a vote for a Democratic candidate in a contested primary, would by law, not be allowed to have another vote on the same ballot for a Republican or an Independent, because the ballot would be considered void. If anyone is interested in crossing party lines to vote for an Independent or a Republican, to try to get incumbent Republicans out of office, (while the strategy might be effective), we ask that Democratic voters not use this tactic where they are also voting for Democratic candidates in the Primary elections, to avoid having their ballots invalidated.

• Candidates for various offices were invited to introduce themselves.
• Rollie Hicks is Vice Chair of the Eau Clair Democrats. He is running as a candidate for DNC from Eau Claire and asked for everyone’s support.
• Sheldon Wasserman, is running for the 8th State Senate seat (currently held by incumbent Alberta Darling ( R ).
• Andy Feldman spoke about his run for the 22nd Assembly district, (which current Assembly representative, Sheldon Wasserman is vacating for his State Senate run). Other candidates for this seat are Sandra Posch, Rosemary Ponik and possibly Dan Kohl, Senator Herb Kohl’s nephew.
• Perry Duman is running in the 60th Assembly District.
• Ruth Page Jones is running in the 97th. She will have a 3-way primary with Democrats Steve Schmucki and Roger Danielson. The winner will face Republican incumbent, Bill Kramer.
• 5th CD Elections:
• Vice-Chair – Doug Cvetkovich agreed to take the office; he was elected by unanimous consent.
• Platform and Resolutions representative: no one agreed to serve either the 3 year term or the 1 year term.
• Roger Sands was elected Assistant to the Secretary and Treasurer by unanimous consent.
• Resolutions- eight resolutions were presented by Platform and Resolutons representative Hanna McDermott. All of the resolutions were submitted by Washington County Dems.
• Resolution 1- Clean Indoor Air- moved by Charlene Brady, seconded by Frank Kinateder to adopt the resolution. The motion carried with one dissenting vote.
• Resolution 2 – Reinstating the draft – Several amendments were offered; all failed. The resolution failed.
• Moved by Mike Schlotfeldt, seconded by Les Nakamoto to approve the rest of the resolutions en block, unless there were any that the assembled Delegates wanted taken out for discussion or editing. Resolutions on Platform and Resolutions, Super Delegates, Earmarked Funds, State Versus State, Importance of Taxes and Unfair Tax Burden were approved.
• Discussion of the DPW 2008 Platform ensued.
• Third paragraph of Justice, Human Concerns, and Democracy, add back into the 2008 Platform the statement “No branch of government is above the law” at the end of the paragraph.
• Moved by Barbara Landis, seconded by Dale Landis to amend line 47 “sovereignty of Native American nations” to insert “OUR Native American HOSTS”
• Floyd Brenholt asked that the original wording regarding the impeachment of the President, Vice President and Secretary of Defense, be kept from the 2006 Platform, in the 2008 Platform. Les concurred with his appeal, noting that there were numerous Resolutions that were passed at the State Convention in 2005, 2006, and 2007 to that effect, as well as the Platform which was passed in 2006 which demonstrated that this should be continued in the 2008 Platform to keep continuity, and asked to keep the wording about impeachment of the President from the 2006 platform (Pg. 6, Lines 28-30) and insert them in the 2008 platform on line 38, page 5. The word “former” would be inserted before the name Donald Rumseld. Jeannie Nakamoto moved, Les Nakamoto seconded; the motion passed unanimously.
• Further changes to the Platform, and Floor Resolutions can be submitted and proposed at the DPW State Convention.

Announcements:

Yolanda announced she has information about rides and hotel rooms for the convention. Please contact her for details.

Yolanda Kosionowski
2733 S 83rd Place
West Allis, WI 53219
(414) 321-8390


• It was moved by Evelyn Marshal, seconded by Allen Davidson, to adjourn the meeting.
• The meeting adjourned at 3:38 PM.

Respectfully submitted,
Ann Meyers, Secretary

Brian De Palma's Redacted opens 11/16 - Don't let Bill O'Reilly's protests succeed

Why is Bill O'Reilly so terrified of "Redacted" - it's just fictional, isn't it?

Perhaps we should all go see the film this weekend to find out why...

Bob Fertik

"You pull that movie (Redacted) or I'm going to be your worst nightmare"
                      - Bill O'Reilly

Don't let Bill O'Reilly's protests and boycotts succeed.  Please support Redacted, which opens in theatres this Friday in select cities and is available on Ultra VOD on may cable systems.

"An amazingly vigorous work.  (DePalma's) strongest cinematic and political statement at least since Casualties of War.  The movie is a cry of national shame; for De Palma, it's a new badge of honor for a whily old vet."

     -Richard Corliss, TIME

"THE MOVIE EVERYONE WILL BE TALKING ABOUT.  I hope that it makes people livid, that it's furiously debated.  De Palma makes me proud to be an American."

     - David Edelstein, New York Magazine

"The only Iraq film I would rank alongside No End In Sight in the category of ESSENTIAL VIEWING."

     - LA Weekly

"De Palma's anger and frustration with the media course through Redacted like an electrical current."

     -Salon

Watch the Trailer
Visit the Official Website  
Buy Tickets

Now Playing on HDNet Ultra VOD.


A fictional story inspired by true events, REDACTED is a cinematic rallying cry from one of film's greatest provocateurs, Brian De Palma.

REDACTED radically engages viewers in the way images and information are disseminated in a time of war. A profound meditation on the way information is packaged, distributed and received in an era with infinite channels of communication, REDACTED exposes the extreme disconnect between the manipulation of images and information and the truth, especially timely as opposition to the Iraq War continues to mount.

Centered around a small group of American soldiers stationed at a checkpoint in Iraq, REDACTED utilises multiple points of view, balancing the experiences of these young men under duress and the media with those of the local Iraqi people caught in between, illuminating how each have been deeply affected by the Iraq war and the implications of redacting or editing on all of us.

A passionate anti-war film, Brian De Palma's REDACTED is a thrilling return to form for the filmmaker and an urgent call to put an end to the current conflict in Iraq.

If you're having trouble viewing this, click here to view it online.

Bush can't hear you now

When the Bush administration asked telecom companies to help spy on you illegally,

AT&T said, "Sure thing!"

Verizon said, "No problem, W."

BellSouth rolled over too, saying, "Anything for you, Sir."

But not all telecom companies thought the Bush Administration should have unfettered access to the phone records of US citizens. Working Assets did not help the Bush Administration spy on you. This is why we are proud to partner with them to bring you DFA Wireless.

Join DFA Wireless today and get a new cellphone service that will stand up to Bush. Plus, 10% of your charges go to support DFA directly.

http://www.workingassetswireless.com/dfawireless

This week we stopped Senator Feinstein from granting telecom companies immunity for helping Bush break the law. DFA members reported 2,399 calls demanding action. DFA Wireless customers doubled the impact of their calls by holding Senator Feinstein accountable WHILE generating a contribution of 10% of their cell phone charges for DFA.

Working Assets was the only phone company to sign onto the ACLU lawsuit against the National Security Agency's illegal wiretapping program. Working Assets even mobilized its customers to take action against a bill that would provide retroactive immunity to the phone companies that helped the Bush administration spy on Americans.

As the big telecom companies create bigger monopolies and buy the support of more and more politicians with hefty campaign contributions -- Working Assets contributes to progressive causes.

Together, DFA and Working Assets increase the impact of your actions. Join the DFA Wireless team today and raise the power of your voice.

http://www.workingassetswireless.com/dfawireless

Not only does 10% of your monthly bill go directly to support DFA, but Working Assets put together a special offer for all DFA members. Check it out today!

Because when you join DFA Wireless, you stand up to Bush with every call you make.

http://www.workingassetswireless.com/dfawireless

Thanks for all that you do.

Rachel Moss
Finance Director

November 12, 2007

Veterans Day is an important day to reflect on our veterans, and their sacrifices. I've done some reflecting myself.

My name is Elliot Anderson, I'm a marine Afghanistan vet and I first started volunteering with Democracy for America when I attended the Nevada training in February of this year.

I think it's high time we stop making combat veterans and disabled veterans unnecessarily. In Iraq, it's high time to let the civil war we are mediating run its course, and get our troops out of the crossfire. Here at home it's high time to stop the drum beat of war with Iran. It isn't helping veterans to send them overseas into un-just wars.

Most importantly on Veterans Day we must reflect and realize that we are not taking care of the people who we sent to war to the extent they need. Recent reports have shown damning evidence on the results of years of neglect of the Veterans Administration. It has been estimated that over 25% of the homeless are veterans.

Why is that?

Just because you are suffering doesn't mean it is your own fault. For a lot of our homeless veterans they have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and are unemployable. In the meantime because of the neglect of the veterans administration there is a backlog for claims which can take up to 6 months to fix. So what is an unemployable veteran supposed to do for 6 months? The answer, of course, is end up on the streets.

Let's resolve this Veterans Day to remember our veterans 365 days a year and unlike the right wing, continue to put our money where our mouth is. Everyday you can make a difference in a veteran's life. May I suggest a fantastic organization which gets vets off the streets and rehabilitates them?

You can help today at:
http://www.usvetsinc.org

Do what you can to help veterans 365 days a year. If not at the link above, find out where you can make a difference for veterans in your neighborhood and take action. When helping out, let it be known what you think. Tell everyone you meet, "Though I oppose un-just wars, I fully support our veterans." There won't be any doubt who puts their money where their mouth is.

Semper Fi to our veterans and those who tangibly support them,

-Elliot

Elliot Anderson
Afghanistan Veteran
Nevada DFA Member

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 18, 2007

CONTACT:
Colleen Murray
919-636-3203


EDWARDS GAINS SUPPORT ACROSS WISCONSIN, LAUNCHES “TRUE BLUE MAJORITY” CAMPAIGN TO LEAD DEMOCRATS TO VICTORY IN 2008

Democratic leaders in Wisconsin explain why Edwards’ strength at the top of the ticket will motivate swing voters, helping Democrats maintain and expand their majority in Congress and win in down-ballot races in Wisconsin and across the nation

Madison, Wisconsin – As part of a new “True Blue Majority” campaign launching this week, today Democratic leaders from Wisconsin held a conference call with reporters, where they discussed their endorsement of Senator John Edwards for president. During the call, the endorsements of more than twenty prominent Wisconsin Party leaders and elected officials were unveiled, including Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Joe Wineke and Wisconsin State Representatives Frank Boyle, Kim Hixson and Josh Zepnick. The new Edwards endorsements build on a list of 17 Wisconsin supporters unveiled earlier this year, including State Treasurer Dawn Marie Sass, Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, former Governor Tony Earl, and Congressman David Obey, Chairman of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee. Edwards has now been endorsed by more than 40 prominent Democratic leaders in the state.

“It is so important that we nominate a candidate who will motivate swing voters in battleground states, like Wisconsin, to support the Democratic Party in 2008,” said Wisconsin State Treasurer Dawn Marie Sass. “Poll after poll in the red and battleground states shows Edwards to be the strongest Democratic challenger in a general election match-up with the leading Republicans. Edwards’ strength at the top of the ticket will help Democrats not only to take back the White House, but also to maintain and expand our majorities in Congress and state legislatures. And his coattails will help lead Democrats to victory in hundreds of other down-ballot races at the state and local level as well.”

“We need a leader who can compete anywhere in America and win,” said Joe Wineke, Chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. “Some pundits say that a Democrat can’t win in some places in the South, Midwest or West. But they’re wrong. The right Democratic presidential nominee – one who shares our values, understands our issues and offers real and bold solutions – can win these states. That candidate is John Edwards.”

“The American people are tired of being ignored by the folks in Washington. The people who want real change in this nation don’t just live in blue states or in swing states – they live in every state in this country and on every street in America,” said Edwards. “I am committed to spreading a message of real change in every single state in this country. As the Democratic nominee, I will go to the places like small towns in Wisconsin that politicians usually ignore, and I will work to get Democrats elected to Congress, governorships and state legislatures all across this country.”

The following Wisconsin leaders have endorsed John Edwards for president*:

- Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Joe Wineke
- State Representative Frank Boyle
- State Representative Kim Hixson
- State Representative Josh Zepnick
- Wisconsin Democratic Party 2nd Vice Chair, Winnebago County Chair Jef Hall
- Wisconsin Democratic Party Secretary Angela Sutkiewicz
- 8th Congressional District Administrative Committee Dottie LeClair
- 1st Congressional District Chair Ray Rivera
- 2nd CD Vice Chair, Dane County Democratic Party Executive Board Member, Peter Rickman
- Former Executive Director of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, Dane County Democratic Party Executive Board member Don Jones
- Former Executive Director of the Wisconsin Democratic Party Steve Kean
- Dane County Democratic Party Chair Wayne Bigelow
- Columbia County Democratic Party Chair Sara Lloyd
- Fond du Lac County Democratic Party Chair Rich Mantz
- Rock County Democratic Party Chair Tim Rutter
- Waukesha County Democratic Party Chair Vic Weers
- Washburn County Democratic Party Chair Susan Hansen
- Portage County Democratic Party Co-Chair, 7th CD Administrative Committee Member, Greg Hawley
- Portage County Democratic Party Co-Chair Lois Lawler
- Former Democratic Nominee for the 5th Congressional District Bryan Kennedy
- Lake Geneva City Council Member, Alderman Mary Jo Fessenmaier
- Portage County Democratic Party Executive Board Member Charlene Figge
- Marquette County Democratic Party Chair Jan Banicki

The following Wisconsin leaders have also endorsed Senator Edwards for president:

- Congressman and Chairman of the House Appropriation Committee David Obey
- State Treasurer Dawn Marie Sass
- Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz
- Former Governor Tony Earl
- Public Service Commissioner Mark Meyer
- State Senator and Co-Chair of the Committee on Joint Finance Russ Decker
- State Senator Jon Erpenbach
- State Senator Bob Jauch
- State Senator John Lehman
- State Senator Bob Wirch
- State Representative Jennifer Shilling
- State Representative and Former Majority Leader David Travis
- State Representative Amy Sue Vruwink
- State Representative Sondy Pope-Roberts
- State Representative Donna Seidel
- State Representative Mike Sheridan, UAW Local 95 President
- 2nd Vice Chair of State Democratic Party of Wisconsin, Dottie LeClair

*Please note: Endorsements are personal. Titles and positions are listed for identification purposes only.

-30-

Paid for by John Edwards for President.

July 30, 2007

Grassroots Business Group takes Wisconsin Health Reform Plan to Pewaukee

Think our current health care system is bad for business?

Local businesspeople are invited to attend a meeting to organize grassroots business support in the Milwaukee area for the proposed Healthy Wisconsin plan which passed in the State Senate last week. This organization, the Business Coalition for Single Payer Healthcare, will be part of similar groups throughout the state.

The second of three meetings in the area will take place at 5:30pm on Thursday August 2nd at the Machine Shed at I94 and Hwy 164 (exit 294, northeast corner, west of hotel).

Cash bar and optional appetizers or dinner will be available.

The meeting will feature a presentation by Institute for One Wisconsin regarding the details on the Healthy Wisconsin plan, followed by a discussion of possible action that can be taken to support the plan.

The meeting is being organized by Jack Lohman, a retired business owner, Keith Schmitz an owner of public relations firm and a grassroots organizer, and C.J. Brown, a local business consultant. This will be the first of three meetings that will be held in the Milwaukee metro area through August.

Although Families USA reported that Healthy Wisconsin will create 13,000 new jobs and $1 billion in new business activity, existing business groups including WMC have opposed the proposal. That, even though the plan will provide all businesses and their employees with the healthcare coverage they need at a cost for many companies below what they are paying now for healthcare insurance. The plan promises to make Wisconsin businesses more competitive and ultimately make Wisconsin an attractive place to do business.

Space at this event is limited so please RSVP to Keith Schmitz at schmitz1@ameritech. net. You can call 414-963-0847 for more details.

The Waukesha County Democratic Party is holding is first annual
Nelson-Proxmire Award dinner. The award recipient this year is Rick
Congdon, immediate past-chair of the Waukesha Dems. The award is
meant to recognize the recipient's achievement in party-building.
The two venerated senators, Gaylord Nelson and William Proxmire both
worked hard to build the Democratic Party in the state of
Wisconsin , so it's fitting to name an award after these two
champions.



Keynote Speaker for this event is Stan Gruszynski, Wisconsin
Representative to the Democratic National Committee (DNC). Mr
Guszynski serves on the Board of Directors, Wisconsin League of
Conservation Voters, and is Director of the Rural Leadership and
Community Development Program within the Global Environmental
Management Center (GEM).at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
(UWSP). He served in the Wisconsin State Assembly, 71st District,
from 1984 to 1994

Also speaking at the event will be Bill Christofferson, author
of "The Man From Clear Lake: Earth Day Founder Sen. Gaylord Nelson,"
a political biography from University of Wisconsin Press . Mr
Christofferson is a former journalist and longtime campaign
consultant to Wisconsin Democratic candidates, now retired.



Other honored guests will be State Treasurer Dawn Sass, Mayor Larry
Nelson, Waukesha , and Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin,
Joe Wineke.



The event starts at 6:00 p.m., August 3, 2007, Delafield Brewhouse,
3832 Hillside Drive , Delafield , WI 53018 . All tickets must be
purchased in advance. More information is available at
www.waukeshadems.org or by calling 262 439-9424. Please call before
July 30 to make reservations and indicate meal choice, Prime Rib,
Italian Chicken, Vegetarian lasagna



The suggested ticket price is $50 per person. We also could use some
contributions for door prizes and to offset the costs associated
with the event. Those who wish to purchase tickets can do so by
sending the following information to the Waukesha County Democratic
Party, 1726 S. West Avenue , Waukesha , WI 53188 (preferably by July
30):



Name, address, phone, email, occupation, employer, address, employer
phone (if they give more than $100 in any given year) and meal
choice: Prime Rib, Italian Chicken, Vegetarian lasagna. They should
also indicate the number of tickets they are purchasing. Checks must
be made out to the Waukesha County Democratic Party.



(Jim Sullivan cannot attend due to his obligations as a member
of the State Fair board.)

July 5, '07

Where do the Candidates stand on Healthcare Concerns?

We've been asking the candidates for months where they stand on health care. At the upcoming presidential debates on CNN – a Democratic debate on July 23rd and a Republican debate on September 17th – candidates will answer questions submitted via YouTube videos that show questioners' personal perspectives.

As a Health Care Voter we know you want to hear what all the candidates have to say about our nation's health care crisis. Want to ask one or all of the candidates a question? You have an opportunity to turn your question into a short, original video and submit it to YouTube by July 22nd for the Democratic debate in Charleston, South Carolina. Don't forget to wear your purple "I'm A Health Care Voter!" t-shirt when you tape your question. Don't have one? Email us to get one!

CNN's political team will choose the most creative and compelling videos to be posed to the candidates and aired on live TV.

Watch already-submitted videos, and submit your own!



(We already know where Representative F. James Sensenbrenner stands on this issue.  He supports HSAs.  Health Savings Accounts, where you are responsible for saving for any catastrophic illnesses.  In other words, you are on your own.  And, when your life savings are completely depleted, you are still on your own!)

Of course, Representative Sensenbrenner enjoys Health Insurance that is second to none.  100% of all of his and his family's healthcare expenses are paid for under the terms of the healthcare insurance that is supplied to all elected Federal politicians in the United States, and Federal employees.  100% of the premiums for that healthcare insurance are paid for by YOU, the taxpayers.  So, the next time you have to foot the bill for healthcare expenses that are being denied by your insurance policy, or can't pay for needed healthcare because of their high costs and the high costs of the insurance itself, ask yourself these questions. 

Why is it that Representative Sensenbrenner, an employee of the taxpayers of his Congressional District, gets better healthcare than we (his employers), get? (Especially given the fact that he is worth at least $10 million and can afford to pay for healthcare, or even just the premiums, himself.)

Why is it that Representative Sensenbrenner has consistently voted against providing all of the taxpayers of his District, and of this Nation, the same healthcare coverage that he and his family enjoy at our expense?

Could it be that he has a vested interest in making sure that the costs of our healthcare continue to stay high and out of the reach of most Americans, because he is heavily invested in the Healthcare Industry and the big Pharmaceutical companies which profit from the subsidies that he votes for granting them, while at the same time denying average taxpayers affordable healthcare?)

IDENTITY THEFT CONCERNS

Identity Theft has become a major concern to people across the country particularly since the rabid right wing has used it as a means to divide us and blame the problem on immigrants. While there are instances where immigrants have been found with someone else’s Social Security numbers or other identification, most of them did not do it on their own, but rather had help from groups that have stolen large databases and created fraudulent papers for many people as an ongoing enterprise. This practice has become even more common and more profitable since the Real ID bill became law, because it made it more difficult for immigrants to get identification legally.

The fact is that identity theft does not primarily occur on a one on one basis. Most identity theft occurs as a result of large databases being compromised as a result of someone gaining access through the security of governmental or corporate firewalls. Many breaches did not need to go through that security, because individuals entrusted with the safekeeping of those databases carried them home on their laptops, installed them on their home desktops or copied them onto discs which had no security, and should not have been allowed to happen in the first place.


If you suspect that you are a victim of identity theft, or could possibly become one because your information has been accessed as a result of a security breach into a governmental or corporate database, there are practical steps which you can take to avoid financial losses.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recommends in circumstances such as this that you place a fraud alert on your credit file. A fraud alert tells creditors to contact you before they open any new accounts or change your existing accounts. Call any one of the three major credit bureaus. According to the FTC’s website, as soon as one credit bureau confirms your fraud alert, the others are notified to place fraud alerts. All three credit reports will be sent to you, free of charge, for your review.

Equifax 800-525-6525 Experian 888-397-3742 TransUnionCorp 800-680-7289

Even if you do not find any suspicious activity on your initial credit reports, the FTC recommends that you check your credit reports periodically. Victim information sometimes is held for use or shared among a group of thieves at different times. Checking your credit reports periodically can help you spot problems and address them quickly.

If you find suspicious activity on your credit reports or have reason to believe your information is being misused. The FTC recommends that you call your Local Law Enforcement Agency and file a police report. Get a copy of the report; many creditors want the information it contains to absolve you of the fraudulent debts. You also should file a complaint with the FTC at www.ftc.gov/idtheft or at 1-877-ID-THEFT (877-438-4338). Your complaint will be added to the FTC’s Identity Theft Data Clearinghouse, where it will be accessible to law enforcers for their investigations.

You can view Take Charge: Fighting Back Against Identity Theft, a comprehensive guide from the FTC to help you guard against and deal with identity theft by going to http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/idtheft/idt04.shtm on the internet.
 

July 4, 2007

Ed is a long-time political friend. We sometimes find ourselves supporting different candidates, or viewing issues from different angles, but this article hits the nail right on the head. Otherwise intelligent Democrats and progressives frequently fell into the trap of "there's not a bit of difference between the mainstream Democrats and the Republicans." They, especially, did not want to "waste time" listening to concerns about something so arcane as the power to appoint US Attorneys and US Circuit, Appeals, and Supreme Court justices. Considering the power of just the justices -- who have LIFETIME appointments -- is hardly a "waste of time." Then there is the manipulation of the US Attorney appointment process. The Bush-Cheney cabal really ISN'T completely leaving office in January 2009 -- its twisted view of our constitutional rights (what few remain) and the US role in the world will last in the judicial system for at least the next 25 - 30 years.

Read Ed's complete blog. While he brings his argument to bear, specifically, on a 2008 Wis. Supreme Court race, it applies in every electoral district in the nation. Please take a few minutes to consider how you are going to engage in the 2008 political process in your locale.

Complacent progressives deserve some of the blame for neocon control of the courts.

Worry. Don't be happy.
By Ed Garvey

If you were alarmed by recent decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court, let's talk. If you are not outraged by the decisions of the neocon majority of the Bush/Roberts/Alito/Scalia Supreme Court, stop reading and move to the sports page. If you are scared, read on and send your comments to FightingBob.com by clicking the "comments" button at the top of this page.

A little background music before we plunge in. I had friends who would not support Hubert Humphrey over Richard Nixon because he was late in calling for an end to the Vietnam War. Imagine how different the world would be had Hubert won. Thousands of lives would have been saved, Watergate would just be a condo in Georgetown, and Gerald Ford would be but a footnote as the longest-serving member of the House from Michigan.

Years later, other friends who thought Walter Mondale and Al Gore weren't good enough didn't vote. To say they would act differently if we citizens had the Clintonian luxury of "if I knew then what I know now" doesn't alter the makeup of the Supreme Court or the tragedy of Iraq.

Recently I've heard lots of people say, "My God, I had no idea Bush could be this bad. Brown v. Board of Education. What are they thinking!"

....

So you have been warned. Don't tell me in '09, "If I knew then what I know now "


Full article at:
http://fightingbob.com/article.cfm?articleID=712

Liberties lost
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED JULY 4, 2007

I don't know how long this link to the Baltimore Sun's 4th of July editorial will stay up, so you may want to take a look soon. (It might disappear just like our liberties, freedoms and oversight of our “representative” government have.)

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/bal-ed.fourth04jul04,0,3171162.story?track=mostviewedlink

Besides all his other gifts, Thomas Jefferson appears to have been prophetic.

In his first presidential inaugural address in 1801, he ticked off a long list of essential principles of government, featuring highlights of the Bill of Rights, and called preservation of the government "in its whole constitutional vigor" the "anchor of our peace at home and safety abroad."

These principles "should be the creed of our political faith," he said. "Should we wander from them in moments of error or of alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty and safety."

(Thanks to Don Jones for bringing this and the previous article to our attention.)

Could You Pass The Test For Citizenship?

These are some of the questions that immigrants have to answer in order to become a naturalized citizen.  Could you, or anyone you know who is already a citizen pass the same test?  By the way, the real test is an oral exam, not multiple choice.

Take the test online to submit for scoring and the correct answers.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19552808/

If you can't access the link, here are the questions that you can copy and print out.

When immigrants want to become Americans, they must take a civics test as part of their naturalization interview before a Citizenship and Immigration Services (INS) officer. The questions are usually selected from a list of 100 sample questions that prospective citizens can look at ahead of the interview (though the examiner is not limited to those questions). Some are easy, some are not. We have picked some of the more difficult ones.
NOTES: The INS plans to revise its list of questions in 2008 (a pilot program is using these new questions at selected INS sites). Also, the questions in the test below are as asked on the official United States Immigration and Naturalization Services Web site. Candidates are not given multiple choices in the naturalization interview, which is conducted orally.

1. How many stripes are there on the U.S. flag?




10


13


50


51

2. Who is the chief justice of the Supreme Court today?




George W. Bush


Alberto Gonzales


Thomas Jefferson


John G. Roberts Jr.

3. In what year was the Constitution written?




1776


1787


1876


1812

4. Which of these is guaranteed by the First Amendment?




Freedom of the press


Right to bear arms


Right to happiness


Right to trial by jury

5. How many Supreme Court justices are there?




3


9


10


13

6. What are the first 10 amendments to the Constitution called?




The Preamble


The Bill of Rights


First Ten Amendments


Lewis “Scooter” Libby

7. When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?




July 4, 1776


July 4, 1787


July 4, 1812


July 4, 1876

8. Which of the following amendments to the Constitution does NOT address or guarantee voting rights?




19th Amendment


24th Amendment


15th Amendment


7th Amendment

9. What are the 13 original states?




Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, New Zealand, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Rhode Island, Maryland


Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Rhode Island, Maryland


Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Rhode Island, Maryland


Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Rhode Island, Maryland, Washington, D.C.

10. What do the stripes on the U.S. flag mean?




The Cabinet


One for each state in the Union


They represent the 13 original states


One for each article of the Constitution

11. What is the introduction to the Constitution called?




The Preamble


The Bill of Rights


The Declaration of Independence


The Articles of Confederation

12. How many changes or amendments are there to the Constitution?




9


10


13


27

13. Which of the following is NOT one of the constitutional requirements to be eligible to become president?




Must be at least 35 years old by the time he/she will serve


Must have lived in the United States for at least 14 years


Must be a natural-born citizen of the United States


Must have served as a governor

14. Who selects the Supreme Court justices?




The Electoral College


The people


They are appointed by the president


The Senate

15. How many representatives are there in Congress?




50


100


102


435

16. Who said, "Give me liberty or give me death"?




George Washington


Benjamin Franklin


Thomas Jefferson


Patrick Henry

17. Why did the Pilgrims come to America?




In search of gold


To meet the Indians


For religious freedom


To escape the Revolutionary War

18. Who has the power to declare war?




Congress


The president


Chief justice of the Supreme Court


Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

19. What INS form is used to apply to become a naturalized citizen?




Form N-200 "Petition for Naturalization"


N-400 "Application for Naturalization"


Social Security card


FD-258

20. Which of these contains three rights or freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights?




Right to life, right to liberty, right to the pursuit of happiness


Freedom of speech, freedom of press, freedom of religion


Right to protest, right to protection under the law, freedom of religion


Freedom of religion, right to elect representatives, human rights

July 3, 2007

What Newspaper Editorials Across The Country are Saying About Bush's Commutation of Scooter Libby's Sentence

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19580599/  

July 1, 2007

Report on the 2007 DPW State Convention

Highlights:

Friday Night Speeches

WisPolitics.com has audio clips of the speeches on their website.

Click HERE to find and select the speeches you would like to listen to.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett addresses the 2007 State DPW Convention and welcomes everyone to Milwaukee.

Assembly Representative Jim Kreuser speaks on the Assembly Democratic Campaign Committee - ADCC, plans to retake the majority in the Wisconsin State Assembly.  We need three more more seats to take back the Assembly and help support Governor Jim Doyle!

In 2006, we came within 625 votes of taking the majority in the Assembly!! We need to turn out the VOTES in 2008 to take back the majority!

In 2006, Assembly Democrats made the biggest gain in more than 35 years!

Secretary of State Doug LaFollette speaks to the crowd.

Congressman Steve Kagen, M.D. 8th CD (who defeated Republican incumbent John Gard in 2006).  Tells the crowd that the Justice system has fallen apart under Bush - "You can't Trust Republicans!"  "No More Lies!"  "Our soldiers are paying the price for Bush's poor judgement and his lies."  "Making WAR is our worst human failure!"  "Bring back Habeus Corpus bill has been presented in Congress." 

The Bush administration stacked the Supreme Court, which just ruled against Brown vs. The Board of Education and has now ruled that segregation is legal again! 

In the 110th Congress' first 176 days, the Democratic Congressional Contingent saved Senior Care for Wisconsin seniors.

The Democratic Majority in Congress restored honesty and integrity to government oversight and held over 200 hearings to hold companies and individuals responsible for their actions. 

He quotes Bobby Kennedy on the night Martin Luther King was assassinated when he is able to prevent riots in the city even though riots have broken out across the nation.

"What kind of nation are we?"

and "In which direction shall we move?"

He fires up the crowd....

....and brings them to their feet.

Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin 2nd CD.  Announces that the 2nd CD had the second highest turnout percentage IN THE NATION, in 2006.  Unfortunately, another CD in Wisconsin had the first highest turnout percentage IN THE NATION in 2006, and that was the 5th CD of Wisconsin, which turned out for Representative Senselessbrenner!    (OUR BAD!!!)

Our Democratic controlled Congress raised the minimum wage for the first time in 10 years!

Passed the Employee Free Choice Act.

House passed the Hate Crime Prevention Act.

Has presented legislation to respond to Global Warming.

Also has presented a Bicameral Universal Health Care Bill.

"We need to fix things to help to cleanse (the nation)"

"We need to restore a solid foundation before we can build and renew."

"We must renew the promise of America!"

"We are a people in search of our future!"

Remember Barbara Jordan who in 1976 said "Who will speak for America?  Who will speak for the common good?"

Congresswoman Gwen Moore, 4th CD was able to earmark $87 million for Wisconsin.

"We have a purple state. 

Bush has taken us to new heights of hypocrisy!

Remember "The Color Purple", by Alice Walker?  Here's a quote... "When you walk by the color purple in a field and don't notice it, it PISSES GOD OFF!"

We need to turn this purple state BLUE.

We are in our 5th year of the  worst military fiasco in our history since Vietnam.  We need funding here at home! 

Glen Beck tried to get people to rescind the 14th Amendment to the Constitution! (which allows babies or immigrants born in the United States to be U.S. citizens.)

"Safe, secure borders should not be secured at the expense of orphaning children by deporting their parents."

July 24th marks the beginning of the 1st minimum wage increase in 10 years!

The Democratic controlled Congress has delivered on Disaster Relief Funding and the Biggest Veteran's Health Care Bill passed in U.S. History, giving back benefits to Veterans that the Bush Administration and the Republican controlled 108th and 109th Congress took away.

Gwen works the crowd...

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